“I saw one of them in here, Julian. Those shadow things. I saw it. It went into Seth’s bedroom.”
A frown creased his smooth brow. “You must have been imagining things, Gwynneth. Are you positive?”
“Yes.” She stared at him uncertainly. “You have to keep those things out of here.”
“You are asking for my help, then?”
Gwynneth hesitated. The question seemed to imply much more than she wanted to admit.
“I need something from you in return,” Julian said quietly. He took her arms. “Just a small token. You won’t miss it.”
She covered her face with her hands. “I must be going crazy. You’re a figment of my imagination. Forget it, Julian. Just go away.”
“Is that what you think I am?” He gently removed her hands from her face. “I’m not a figment of your imagination, Gwynneth. I assure you.”
She looked up at him. His face was so beautiful. Mesmerizing. She felt herself lean toward him without thinking.
“A small token.” His gloved thumb stroked her cheek hypnotically. “I can offer you so much in return. Let me show you.”
His storm-filled eyes made her feel like she was drowning. Before she could reply, Gwynneth was pulled into blackness.
Folding. Everything was folding in on them. The weight of the air pressed against her skin, crushing her. Something evil hovered around them. Waiting. She could feel it. Poised to strike, it was ready to yank her from Julian’s grasp. She clung to Julian in fear, the blood pounding in her ears.
The weight was suddenly lifted, and they stood in the empty reception room of Homestead. “What was that?” she began. ”Why are we here?”
“Trust me.” Julian held her as she gained her bearings again. “I will show you what it can be.”
“Nobody will die?”
“If you trust me.”
Perplexed, she allowed him to lead her down the hallway. They arrived at room 102. Mr. Allen’s room, Gwynneth thought. Everyone liked the elderly gentleman, even his children visited several times a week. She hated that Mr. Allen’s medication made him forget things from time to time, but most of the residents were on medication of some kind.
Mr. Allen sat in bed, doing crosswords puzzles. She wasn’t surprised to see him awake. Most of the elderly kept odd hours and experienced insomnia.
“He can’t see us either?” she whispered.
“No.” Julian stood behind her. His slid his hands up her arms, and nudged her forward. “Watch, Gwynneth.”
She watched, trepidation pricking at her insides. Something peeled itself from the wall and occupied space in the room. Something dark and filled with need.
“What is that?” she breathed. “Julian, you promised.” In a blink, it was beside Mr. Allen. The figure jerked and flickered humanlike, but wrong. Its arms and legs were moving backwards against their joints, and its face morphed but wouldn’t settle. It reached out with lightning speed and grabbed Mr. Allen by the shoulders.
“No!” she screamed.
Julian stopped her from lunging forward. His fingers dug painfully into her skin. “Tell it to go away, Gwynneth.” He pulled her against his chest. “Stop it from taking his life. You can, you know.”
Her heart raced. Gwynneth felt like the air was being sucked from the room. Mr. Allen fell backwards onto his bed. The figure crawled over him like an insect.
She lunged against Julian’s viselike grip. “Stop!”
The black figure immediately pulled away. In a blink, it was on them, and they fell backwards onto the floor. Icy cold washed over Gwynneth as the creature enveloped her body like a second skin.
